Another local elected official in Woodland just sent me an e-mail asking why I was not listed as someone endorsing Proposition 8 (Marriage Protection). I did not have a good answer for that — except that I had not been asked for my official support of the measure until now.

Many local elected officials read this blog. You can add your name to the growing list of people supporting marriage as being defined as between one man and one woman by clicking here.

Just click on "Endorse Us Today" and add your information. I just did.

If you look at the endorsement list it already includes FlashReport bloggers Senator George Runner, Senator Jim Battin, Assemblyman Doug LaMalfa, West Covina School Board Member Mike Spence, and former Assemblyman Ray Haynes,… Read More

This week I have the opportunity to do something most Republicans would love (or fear) to do…attend the Democratic National Convention. As a Republican, I won’t have credentials to get into the Pepsi Center, but national convention attendees know that much of the more interesting action takes place outside the convention hall anyway.

I’m here as part of the team promoting documentary film Obsession. This award-winning movie is a startling revelation of the full threat radical Islamic terrorism poses to the West. If you haven’t seen the film already, definitely make it a priority. Our team will be launching a media blitz this week, calling on Senator Obama and his party to truly address radical terrorism—and that doesn’t mean simply talking about hope, change and peace.

With Obama’s choice of Joe Biden to fill his national/international security credibility… Read More

I’ll haveacolumn later this week about why the GOP is losing voters, but I can guarantee this, it isn’t because Republicans in the Assembly are hanging tough in the latest State budget fight. In fact, if they keep it up, they’ll likely wind up gaining back some of the respect that our GOP officeholders have lost over the years. With the Governor spewing more nonsense yesterday, questioning the "courage" of the State legislature, it is instructive to look at Assembly Leader Mike Villines response:

Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines of Clovis questioned the governor’s own gutsiness.

"I don’t believe it shows strong backbone to have said (no tax increases) publicly for years and years and years – and then to change your position overnight," Villines said.

Now, even though Villines is my friend, I am more than objective about our elected leadership. I happen to think Mike Villines is one of the more under appreciated elected officials in California. He speaks and reacts from his gut – and he’s a conservative before he’s a… Read More

Now that Democrats have conceded that the world is a scary place, and Obama can’t handle it alone, they have named Senator Biden as the VP/Man-Behind-the-Curtain for their ticket. And the Democrats are exactly right…the world is a scary place. Iran continues to be the biggest threat to peace in the Middle East, and while we’ve got them pinned down in an unwinnable two front war scenario with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, Russia is taking full advantage of our situation by making a rush to control natural gas pipelines to Europe before winter sets in so they can hold the EU hostage in choice between freezing to death or capitulating to Russia’s geopolitical demands. Come January 2009, the White House is no place for amateurs or understudies.

This is why I’m keeping my fingers crossed that native Californian Condoleezza Rice will be… Read More

Obama picks Sen. Joe Biden for VP — the announcement apparently going out over email to Obama supporters.

The Senator from Delaware was a front runner in the Democrat VP sweepstakes, but you have to wonder how a 65-year old New Englander who spent almost half his life as a DC insider fits with the "change" theme of the freshman Senator from Illinois.

For me, Biden highlights the uncertainty of Obama. It’s kind of like putting a vintage Shelby Cobra shifter on a Mazda Miaita…it only serves as a reminder you’re still driving an under-powered roadster that’s more about flash than substance.

Biden does bring some foreign policy expertise to the ticket — and perhaps some maturity and comfort to older voters, but I see more desperation than inspiration in this selection.

Pundits will have a field day analyzing the impact of the Obama-Biden ticket, but I can’t help but think that this selection more about appeasement rather than a inspired running-mate.… Read More

Today we feature a guest commentary from Lew Uhler, President of the National Tax Limitation Committee: REPUBLICAN LEGISLATORS ARE CALIFORNIA TAXPAYERS’ FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE By Lewis K. Uhler, President, National Tax Limitation Committee All California taxpayers owe a debt of gratitude to the Republic legislators who are standing resolutely against tax increases. Assembly Minority Leader Mike Villines typifies the Republican attitude and commitment in his recent comment: “Consistently we’re listening to the Democrat leadership and, frankly, the governor, talk about raising taxes. And I’m just tired of hearing it. We’re… Read More

Today we feature a guest commentary from Lew Uhler, President of the National Tax Limitation Committee: REPUBLICAN LEGISLATORS ARE CALIFORNIA TAXPAYERS’ FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE By Lewis K. Uhler, President, National Tax Limitation Committee All California taxpayers owe a debt of gratitude to the Republic legislators who are standing resolutely against tax increases. Assembly Minority Leader Mike Villines typifies the Republican attitude and commitment in his recent comment: “Consistently we’re listening to the Democrat leadership and, frankly, the governor, talk about raising taxes. And I’m just tired of hearing it. We’re… Read More

From the Wall Street Journal’s Political Diary E-mail — good news!!

Free to Blog

It isn’t every Tuesday that DailyKos and the Heritage Foundation find common cause, but that was the case after a Federal Election Commission ruling this week that exempts political bloggers from rules governing political organizations. The decision, great news for bloggers, also highlights the proliferation of chronic whiners that the campaign finance laws have produced. Politicians and their allies increasingly are resorting to lawsuits and regulatory complaints in an attempt to silence opponents and critics.

In this case, the whining was done by a Hillary Clinton supporter who complained that a pro-Obama blog called "Iowa True Blue" was working hand-in-glove… Read More